ultrasound bill causes questions

Requiring doctors to show women seeking an abortion an ultrasound image of their fetus could be declared unconstitutional if it is interpreted as forcing an unwilling patient, the South Carolina state attorney general told legislators Wednesday in a letter. "In my opinion, it would be illegal and improper for the state to force a person seeking an abortion to view an ultrasound image against her will," wrote McMaster, a Republican, who did not attend the hearing. The bill, already passed by the state House and being considered by a Senate panel, would require women seeking an abortion to get an ultrasound — something usually done already to verify the fetus' age. It would also require that the ultrasound images "be reproduced and reviewed with the mother" by a doctor or technician.